Help stop sex trafficking in the Fox Cities

Women and girls are advertised for sex every day on the Appleton/Oshkosh/Fond du Lac Backpage escorts page online. Local officials say the ads tend to increase in number during large events like EAA Airventure or Country USA.(Photo: File illustration/USA TODAY NETWORK-Wisconsin)Buy Photo

This marked my first interaction with Backpage, a classified ad website that promotes sex trafficking. Backpage is the world’s largest classified ad company. It's valued at nearly one billion dollars and has operations in 97 countries and 943 locations worldwide. Backpage and similar sites, such as Mocospace and Craigslist post millions of sex ads each day. The only thing separating me from buying an underage child for sex was a click of my mouse.

Human trafficking is the fastest growing industry in the world generating over $150 billion annually in the United States alone. The International Justice Mission estimates 45 million people live in slavery today. About 300,000 children are at risk of being trafficked, 80 percent of whom are female, 50 percent are children, 75 percent of all trafficking victims are sold for sex. Ninety-nine percent of sex trafficking victims are never recovered. Less than one percent of the monsters perpetuating these crimes are convicted.

Sexual exploitation is no longer reserved for brothels and back alleys. Sex trafficking is a billion dollar, market-driven industry based on simple principles of supply and demand. Sex trafficking is second only to drug trafficking as the most profitable criminal industry. Drugs can be sold once, but women and children can be sold over and over, day after day.

Traffickers use force, fraud or coercion to lure vulnerable victims, forcing them into commercial sexploitation. Victims are susceptible for a variety of reasons, including psychological or emotional vulnerability, economic hardship and isolation.

Trauma inflicted by traffickers is so intense and debilitating that many may not identify as victims or know to ask for help. Alaina Vallafsky, from the Sexual Assault Crisis Center in Appleton, said a victim "may relapse 20 times before she gets out. We have to be there every step of the way. It’s a complicated process.”

“Even though sex trafficking is hidden from civilized society, the reality of purchasing women and children on the Internet is very real.”

Trish Propson

Commercial sexual exploitation is defined as the exchange of food, shelter, drugs and money needed for survival in exchange for sex. Even though sex trafficking is hidden from civilized society, the reality of purchasing women and children on the internet is very real. Human trafficking is reported in all 50 states. Wisconsin is not exempt, with sex trafficking reported in all 72 counties. Milwaukee is a hub for trafficking that ranks among the top five cities in the U.S. for trafficked adolescents.

Lt. Jeff Miller, of the Appleton Police Department and the Outagamie County Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Partnership, deals with trafficking every day.

“It is easy to purchase a person for sex on the internet. This isn’t a movie — it’s a real life, human rights issue. We must tackle it differently. People need to educate themselves and laws need to change," Miller said. "If we work together with one voice, we can make it happen.”

“Anybody can fight sex trafficking with awareness and education, but more help is needed. People can get involved by getting trained, donating resources, reporting suspicious behavior and volunteering to advocate,” she said.

The Apostle Paul wrote in his letter to the Philippians, “Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”

We cannot ignore modern day slavery in America. Won’t you join the fight to end sex trafficking?

Trish Propson is a Kaukauna resident and a Post-Crescent community columnist. She can be reached at trish@cornerstonecomm.org.